Arx Fatalis…
 

I didnt want to go off on an Arx tangent in the NWN2 thread so I'll post some thoughts here.

Several posters are saying it is one of the greatest RPG's ever made. I'd say its a love/hate relationship.

I'll start with the love: atmospheric, consequences, freedom of choice, fun combat. Great world concept.

Now the hate:
- scripted sequences that break the quest. No spoilers here - just a hint: You have to follow a certain "group" even though you know exactly where they are headed? If you run by them quest fails even though you arrive earlier! WTF?
- Levitation is beyond annoying and barely works.
- Jumping (required in some places) is painfully quirky.
- NPC's have very limited interaction. They make misleading statments like "let me know when you have an update" and there is no way to deliver an update since there are so few event triggers in the game.
- Armour penalties on magic have next to no effect.
- You have to eat but can't sleep.
- There is an unseamly pause before a death animation during combat. Bizzarre.

Overall I'd rate the game a 75%.

The game is also very tough…
 

Not only that bro, they don't give much hints on what to do when you're lost…

I've stopped playing because I can't figure out how to place the runes in the Crypts even though I have the damned walkthrough!!! I can't figure out witch way to put them.

Anyway, you're on your own on this game. The devs just figured that we were all Einsteins and told themselves that it wouldn't be that hard to complete.

I raise my hat to those who have indeed beat the game. :cool:

I agree - it is wildly uneven, but terribly charming and addictive.

I look at it this way - I played a mage and had no dexterity / athletics ability, so there was one jump in an area that you couldn't use Levitate in that was nearly impossible. I actually counted that I did the 'die & retry' at least *125 times* before making that jump - and the solution was to lower my resolution so that the pixel collision would favor me ;)

The lack of event triggers / hints made this one of the very few times I consulted a walkthrough …

I finished the game and really enjoyed even though it was annoying from time to time. I had walkthrough at my hand and consulted it from time to time (I do it very rarely but this game simply asked for it, I don't follow any rule on walkthroughs - sometimes a too long figuring what to do ruins the game for me).

You're my hero. ;)

Hehe … I tell you, that jump I made is pretty near the end, otherwise I would never have finished. Haven't finished a second time, though.

I finished it too. Twice. Loved it both times. Strangely, none of the things Todd mentions bothered me much, although I do have a vague recollection of dying of falls a lot…

Gosh, I must be dumd…
 

You guys,

I really gave it a try. I put them in the order I first thought was right, then the one the walkthrough said and then, I stopped playing……………..

Maybe one day, I'll give it another try… :-/

BTW, I wanted to write dumb but I can't change the spelling…

Well its good to know I'm not the only one who thinks the Jem isnt exactly polished.

Literally, one day I love it and the next I'm ready to give up. Still playing though! ;)

125 times, are you serious!? I loved the game, but try 50 would have been my limit. I do know what you are talking about though, that lava pit was a bit frustrating to say the least. I can't really see what purpose that lava pit served for the Dwarves, but I'm sure it was important. I mean, who hasn't used a lava pit at least once in their lives?

On a different note, does anyone here know what Arkane's next move will be? I'm really pulling for an Arx 2. Those Goblins have a special place in my heart.

Stop that spoiler boy!

Sadly enough, I am. It wasn't all at once - but I started keeping count. It was one of the early questions I had at the Dot. It took me a while to get to the past platform … then forever to make it across.

That sounds about right. I killed one of the cloaked guys and he got stuck in the doorway and the door after that failed to open. Reload. Reload. Reload.

Hard to believe this was a console release too. That must have been pretty interesting!

But the world has its draws like you've said - I feel like there are 1000's of tons of rock over my head! Its pretty engrossing.

They do have the multi-stage forging in Dark Messiah … for *TWO* swords :rolleyes: … completely under-developed … but it is still a nice mechanic - heat & melt, pour, cool, re-heat, hammer, and combine with the handle …

So glad someone started this thread. I loved Arx and played it about 9 times through. :lol:

Hehe - you actually helped me with the jump problem (or at least tried - you referred me to one of the devs, and it was on some other boards I found the solution)

Arx Fatalis was a really hard nut, even today I get goose bumps when I think of that dwarven dungeon with all the lava and those shadow beasts hunting you.
When I think of that part of the game I feel the sudden urge to push the quickload button:D

It was a great and fun game, but tough enough that your general FPS player probably didn't enjoy it. I have to agree that in places it was just a little challenging to figure out what to do next!! :)

It was one of my favorite games of a few years ago. Sure, it was a bit on the tough side, but I really liked the game's atmosphere, the guards and the Ylsides.

Well last night was definately a good night for Arx. It was scaring the piss out of me with those invisible grunts, growls and footsteps - especially with the EAX sound cranked up. I was panicking to go into combat mode and spinning around looking for someone to fight. Pretty freaky stuff!